Worthwhile Charities

At PFI Advisors, we are committed not only to our clients, but also to our community. As part of our mission, we are dedicated to giving back and making the world a better place through these initiatives.

At the age of 6 months, Matt and Larissa’s daughter, Layla Paige, had her first seizure. After being admitted into CHLA, it was discovered that she had a rare and undiagnosed brain disorder. For the next 2 years, Layla received top-rated care from many, many doctors and teams covering numerous divisions and departments: Neurology, Neurosurgery, Neuro-Ophthalmology, Orthopedic, Genetics/Pathology, Gastroenterology, Pulmonology, General Pediatrics, Clinical Nutrition, Physical Therapy, Occupational Therapy, Vision Therapy, and ultimately Palliative Care.

Layla fought like a true Warrior Princess for 22 months before finally succumbing to her condition on the morning of July 8th, 2017. Thanks to the tireless efforts of her doctors, nurses and medical teams, she was at home, pain free, and in her mother’s arms surrounded by her father and 4-year-old brother Luke when she took her final breath.

Our Hero even in death, Layla was able to successfully donate her heart (4 heart valves) and both corneas. One cornea was successfully given to a 4 year old girl in the Dominican Republic, and her other cornea was successfully implanted in a 76 year old woman in Arizona. Layla was able to give the amazing gift of vision to two people, even when she herself was unable to see due to her disorder.

Words cannot describe the tremendous debt of gratitude the Sonnen family owes to Children’s Hospital Los Angeles. As the first and largest pediatric hospital in Southern California, CHLA relies on the generosity of philanthropists in the community to support compassionate patient care, leading-edge education of the caregivers of tomorrow and innovative research efforts that impact children and their families.

We hope that you will consider honoring Layla’s legacy and help us say “thank you” for the incredible care our family received by making a donation to Children’s Hospital Los Angeles. Together we can continue to support other patients and families who are in similar situations and seeking life-saving care.

TrinityKids Care Hospice is the only dedicated pediatric hospice program in Los Angeles and Orange counties for infants, children and adolescents with life-limiting illnesses. TrinityKids Care, provides in-home care and support for young patients and their families.

Matt and Larissa’s daughter, Layla Paige, received amazing services from Dr. Glen Komatsu and his entire team during her final months of life. Thanks to the tireless efforts of her doctors, nurses and medical teams, she was at home, pain free, and in her mother’s arms surrounded by her father and 4-year-old brother Luke when she took her final breath. She passed away the morning of July 8, 2017.

Matt first became a “Big” in 2004 when he was matched with six-year old Evan. He watched Evan grow into a 14 year-old “man” over eight years of bike rides, Frisbee games, rock-skipping contests, countless cheeseburgers, guitar “jams,” Scrabble games, and tons of side-splitting laughs. Evan moved to New Orleans in 2012, but they have maintained contact over phone calls and text messages. Matt’s proudest moment was in May 2015, when Evan sent an audio file of a new guitar song he had just learned – Pink Floyd’s “Wish You Were Here.”

Matt and Larissa are President’s Circle donors to Big Brothers Big Sisters of Greater Los Angeles. To learn more about the Big Brothers Big Sisters organization, and to learn about volunteering or donation opportunities, please visit http://bbbsla.org/donate/

The Sunshine Kids is a non-profit organization that adds quality of life to children with cancer by providing them with exciting, positive group activities which promote self-esteem, personal accomplishment and just plain old fashioned fun! Larissa has been involved with The Sunshine Kids as a donor of supplies, funds, and has participated at fund-raising events for over 10 years. Funded by personal contributions, corporations and foundations, the Sunshine Kids continues, as it has since its inception in 1982, to provide all of its activities completely free of charge to the children’s families and hospitals.

St. Jude is leading the way the world understands, treats and defeats childhood cancer and other life-threatening diseases. Anna has been a donor and volunteer for St. Jude’s for several years. The mission of St. Jude’s is to advance cures, and means of prevention, for pediatric catastrophic diseases through research and treatment. Amazingly, no child is denied treatment based on race, religion or a family’s ability to pay. St. Jude’s was ranked the #1 children’s cancer hospital in the United States by U.S. News & World Report’s 2010-2011 Best Children’s Hospital Rankings.

To learn more about St. Jude’s, and to learn about ways to volunteer or donate, please visit https://www.stjude.org

9th Life Hawaii is Maui’s largest, non-profit, No Kill Cat Rescue & Sanctuary. As of April 1, 2015, they have sterilized more than 6,800 cats and have monthly spay/neuter clinics to humanely reduce the cat population. 9th Life Hawaii is presently providing shelter for just under 300 cats. These cats receive the best of care, special foods and vet care when needed and because they are NO KILL, the animals will continue to receive five star care and medical care as needed.

Larissa has been involved with 9th Life for many years, having visited and worked at the facility several times over the past decade. Matt and Larissa have been generous donors to 9th Life’s mission for many years.